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Abstract

An innovative technique to reduce soil compaction and prevent recompaction simultaneously is presented for application to reconstructed soil on surface-mined land. This method employs conventional deep tillage technology in conjunction with pneumatic injection of organic soil amendments. The concept was tested extensively in the laboratory with a series of experiments performed on soil bins that had been compacted, treated, and then subjected to recompaction. The success of the technique was evaluated by analyzing various soil properties at each stage of the tests. The soil properties considered were bulk density, core penetrometer resistance, and hydraulic conductivity. There was also a field component of the investigation that monitored the bulk density of reclaimed prime farmland soil. The culmination of this effort is a conceptual design of a system that can be used for future prototype development.